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From alcohol use to social isolation, poor hearing and heart disease, researchers have identified more than a dozen non-genetic factors that up the risk of dementia for people under 65. Though about 370,000 new cases a year of young-onset dementia are diagnosed worldwide, it hasn’t been well-researched. Now, a large study from scientists in the U.K. and the Netherlands suggests that targeting health and lifestyle factors may help lower the risk. Researchers followed more than 350,000 people under 65 who were part of the U.K. Biobank study. They found that those with less education, lower economic status, lifestyle factors such as alcohol use disorder and social isolation, and health issues including vitamin D deficiency, depression, stroke, impaired hearing and heart disease had significantly higher odds for a dementia diagnosis. While particular gene variants did play a role, the findings challenge the idea that genetics alone are to blame. “This is the largest and most robust study of its kind ever conducted,” said study co-author David Llewellyn, director of research and impact at the University of Exeter Medical School in the U.K. “Excitingly, for the first time, it reveals that we may be able to take action to reduce risk of this debilitating condition, through targeting a range of different factors.” Young-onset dementia exacts a high toll, according to study co-author Stevie Hendriks, a researcher at… read on > read on >

A new cellular therapy improved learning and memory in mice with Alzheimer’s disease, researchers report. The therapy — developed at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) — relies on both the immune system to fight key aspects of Alzheimer’s, plus modified cells that zero in on the brain protein plaques that are a hallmark of the disease. In patients with Alzheimer’s, amyloid-beta protein forms plaques that prevent nerve cells from signaling each other. One theory is that this might cause irreversible memory loss and behavior changes characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease. The new study was recently published in the journal Molecular Neurodegeneration. Researchers used genetically modified immune-controlling cells called Tregs to target amyloid-beta. When the UNMC team injected the modified Treg cells into the bloodstreams of mice, buildup of plaque and brain inflammation slowed. Thinking skills also appeared to improve in the diseased mice. While the results of animal studies often turn out differently in humans, researchers were encouraged by the findings. “The study is an important development in the field that advances the possibility of using cell-based therapies for targeting protein aggregates in neurodegenerative diseases,” said senior investigator Dr. Avindra Nath, of the National Institutes of Health, which funded the study. Researchers said the engineered immune cells could offer a targeted and more effective treatment for Alzheimer’s, a disease affecting an estimated 6.7 million… read on > read on >

New research offers yet more evidence that veggies, whole grains and low-fat dairy products are good for you in the long run. “Our study goes beyond the simple question of, ‘To carb or not to carb?’” said lead study author Binkai Liu, a research assistant in the nutrition department at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston. “It dissects the low-carbohydrate diet and provides a nuanced look at how the composition of these diets can affect health over years, not just weeks or months,” Liu explained in a Harvard news release. The key takeaway: Not all low-carb diets are the same when it comes to managing weight over the long haul. In the study, researchers analyzed data from more than 123,000 healthy adults who were part of major research studies between 1986 and 2018. Participants reported on their diets and weights every four years, and they were scored based on adherence to five types of low-carb diet. They included ones based on animal proteins, plant-based proteins and ones that emphasized animal proteins, unhealthy fats and processed grains. Low-carb regimens high in proteins, fats and carbs from healthy, plant-based sources were linked to slower long-term weight gain. Participants who stuck with total low-carb or animal-based eating regimens gained more weight, on average, than those who followed a healthy low-carb eating plan over time. These… read on > read on >

Stroke patients often suffer from “spatial neglect” — an inability to see things on the side of the body opposite to where the brain injury occurred. Now, new research suggests that spatial neglect can also affect folks who’ve had a traumatic brain injury (TBI). The study makes clear that screening for spatial neglect “is warranted in TBI rehabilitation as well as in stroke rehabilitation programs,” said study lead author Peii Chen. She’s a senior research scientist at the Kessler Foundation, in East Hanover, N.J. The nonprofit focuses on rehabilitation medicine. In a Kessler news release, the researchers noted that spatial neglect affects many stroke survivors. It’s more common among folks who suffered brain damage to the right side of their brain (up to 45% of patients) compared to the left (up to 23%). Not being able to comprehend or navigate space on one side of the body can “can lead to prolonged disability after brain damage by impairing daily functions and reducing the effectiveness of rehabilitation therapies,” according to the news release. The new research tracked the symptoms of over 3,600 stroke survivors and 266 head injury patients treated at 16 rehabilitation hospitals across the United States. More than half (58%) of stroke survivors experienced spatial neglect, Chen’s team found, as did 38% of TBI patients following their injury. “We found that spatial neglect affects… read on > read on >

New research suggests the effects of high blood pressure during pregnancy may be long-lasting. Researchers found that women who developed high blood pressure during pregnancy had tell-tale signs of abnormal heart structure and function up to a decade later. “This study helps to clarify that, for some women, pregnancy is not just a ‘stress test’ that unmasks underlying cardiovascular risks,” said senior author Dr. Susan Cheng, director of the Institute for Research on Healthy Aging in the cardiology department at Cedars-Sinai’s Smidt Heart Institute in Los Angeles. “This risk may also affect the heart years after pregnancy.” Her team looked at more than 5,000 Hispanic women who had at least one pregnancy and identified those who had disorders during pregnancy such as gestational high blood pressure, preeclampsia or eclampsia. After accounting for other risk factors that might lead to early signs of heart disease, researchers reported that heart images showed persistent problems in about 14% of participants who had high blood pressure problems during pregnancy. They included thicker heart walls, abnormalities in the left ventricle and weakened pumping compared to women who had also been pregnant but had no related high blood pressure disorder. “This study confirms the results of others and demonstrates that women who experience a hypertensive disorder during their pregnancy are more likely to have lasting changes in the structure and function… read on > read on >

A class of sedatives called benzodiazepines, which include meds like Ativan, Valium and Xanax, could be linked to higher odds for miscarriage if taken during pregnancy, new research finds. The findings held even after accounting for possible confounding factors such as anxiety and insomnia, the Taiwanese research team said. Looking at data on about 3 million pregnancies, “we found that benzodiazepine use during pregnancy was associated with an approximately 70% increased risk of miscarriage,” wrote a team led by Fei-Yuan Hsiao at Taiwan University’s Graduate Institute of Clinical Pharmacy. Based on the findings, they urge that doctors “meticulously balance” the risks and benefits of benzodiazepines whenever they consider prescribing the drugs to pregnant women who are dealing with insomnia or other psychiatric issues. In the new study, miscarriage was defined as loss of pregnancy between the first prenatal visit with a doctor (typically around the 8th week of gestation) and before the 20th week. Hsiao’s group looked at data from over 3 million pregnancies among Taiwanese women, out of which 4.4% resulted in a miscarriage. Focusing on the women’s prescription drug use during pregnancy, the study found that using a benzodiazepine boosted the odds for miscarriage by 69%. That number was “consistent” regardless of confounding factors and the duration of benzodiazepine use. The study was published Dec. 27 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. Hsiao’s group… read on > read on >

A common stomach bug may play a part in Alzheimer’s disease risk. New research found that older folks infected with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) had greater odds for developing Alzheimer’s, the most common type of dementia. “Given the global aging population, dementia numbers are expected to triple in the next 40 years,” said study co-author Dr. Paul Brassard, an associate professor of medicine at McGill University in Montreal. “However, there remains a lack of effective treatment options for this disease.” For the study, he and his colleagues analyzed health data gathered between 1988 and 2019 from more than 4 million people in the U.K. They found that people 50 and older with symptomatic H. pylori infections had an 11% higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s. H. pylori, a stomach bug found in two-thirds of people worldwide, can cause indigestion, gastritis, ulcers and even stomach cancer. The new findings add to previous evidence on the potential role of infections in Alzheimer’s development. They also open up the potential for investigating whether eradicating H. pylori could prevent Alzheimer’s in some people. “We hope the findings from this investigation will provide insight on the potential role of H. pylori in dementia, in order to inform the development of prevention strategies, such as individualized eradication programs, to reduce infections at the population level,” Brassard noted in a McGill news release.… read on > read on >

In preliminary findings, Swedish researchers say taking a cholesterol-lowering statin could also slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. The study can’t prove cause-and-effect, but might pave the way to a trial that could confirm such a link, said study author Sara Garcia-Ptacek, an associate professor of neuroscience at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. The study was observational, meaning that it was a look at past data, not a gold standard “prospective” trial. The Swedish team analyzed data on 15,500 people diagnosed with dementia who also had heart issues suggesting that they might benefit from using a statin. About 11,000 of them did go on to use a statin. Tracked for three years, “people with Alzheimer’s dementia treated with statins had better cognitive development over time,” Garcia-Ptacek said in an institute news release. That was true “even though they were more likely to have diagnoses such as high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and diabetes, all of which are risk factors for dementia,” she added. However, the findings, published Dec. 20 in the journal Alzheimer’s Research and Therapy, remain preliminary. “The results of the study do not mean that we now have evidence that people with dementia should be treated with statins,” Garcia-Ptacek stressed. “But on the other hand, we can’t see any support for not doing so. So, if a person needs statins for high… read on > read on >

For the growing number of American seniors who live alone, having a beloved dog or cat by their side could help them maintain a healthy brain. New research on more than 7,900 people averaging 66 years of age found that those who lived alone were able to stave off losses in memory and thinking if they had a pet. Pet ownership didn’t seem to affect the cognition of older folks who lived with others, however. Loneliness — or the lack of it — may be key here. Owning a cat or dog “is related to reduced loneliness, a important risk factor for dementia and cognitive decline,” wrote a team led by Ciyong Lu, of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China. They published their findings Dec. 26 in the journal JAMA Network Open. The researchers noted that people are increasingly living solo as they age — 2021 data found 28.5% of all Americans were residing in single-person households. Numerous studies have found that “older persons living alone are at high risk of developing dementia,” Lu’s group noted. Could life with a four-legged friend cut that risk? The new study was based on data collected on thousands of British people aged 50 or older whose lifestyles and mental acuity were tracked between 2010 and 2019. Just over half (56%) were women. The team assessed whats known as… read on > read on >

At least 251 cases of lead poisoning linked to tainted fruit puree pouches have now been reported in 34 states, U.S. health officials said. That’s up from 205 cases reported in the last weekly tally, the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention noted in its latest update. States reporting new cases to CDC now include Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia. Exactly how many cases have been reported in each state is unclear because the CDC has withheld state-specific counts, pointing to patient privacy, CBS News reported. The median age for cases in the investigation “is nearly 2 years old,” a CDC spokesperson told CBS News, though reports have come in for children as old as 9. Federal officials have urged state health departments to seek out cases of lead poisoning, which could be missed if children who ate the lead-tainted applesauce don’t get blood tests from their doctor for the toxic metal. AustroFoods, which makes the now-recalled WanaBana, Weis and Schnucks brand cinnamon-flavored applesauce pouches, said Monday it will reimburse customers for up to $150 for lead tests. Meanwhile, the FDA reported earlier this month that cinnamon samples gathered at a facility… read on > read on >

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Early-Onset Dementia: Health, Lifestyle Factors May Boost Your Risk

Experimental Therapy Eases Alzheimer’s Signs, Symptoms in Mice

Going Low-Carb? Avoid Meat to Keep the Weight Off Long-Term

Head Trauma Can Spur ‘Spatial Neglect’ Similar to a Stroke

Heart Effects of High Blood Pressure in Pregnancy Could Linger

Xanax, Valium in Pregnancy May Raise Miscarriage Risk

Common Stomach Bug Is Linked to Higher Alzheimer’s Risk

Statins Might Slow Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease

Pets Bring Health Boost to Single Seniors’ Brains: Study

Cases of Lead Poisoning Linked to Fruit Puree Pouches Reaches 251